The Lakers received bad news several hours before their game against the Philadelphia 76ers: Coach Mike Brown was to be suspended one game as punishment for his tantrum during Saturday's Utah Jazz game, and Assistant Coach John Kuester would be in charge for the night. Happy Monday, Lakers! Then the game happened, a 95-90 loss, leaving the Lakers at 1-2 halfway through their road trip.
All was not lost, however, as there were a couple of bright spots in the meltdown. First, Kobe Bryant passed Shaquille O'Neal to reach #5 on the NBA's all time scorers list, behind only Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Kobe now has 28,601 points, and he did it in his hometown, something he really wanted to do. Even former teammate/frenemy Shaq offered his congratulations on such an accomplishment. No doubt Kobe has had a career for the ages, and he's still not done. We are all witnesses. The other bright spot? Andrew Bynum's second career 20/20 game. Other than that, I got nothin'.
The Lakers' current Grammys road trip is far from their longest at six games. They played nine games away from home in '07-'08 and went 7-2; in '09-'10, they played eight and went 5-3. By any measure, the 2008 trip was their most successful, not just by record, but because they left pregnant with Kwame Brown and came home with a baby brother for Kobe named Pau Gasol. That said, don't expect this trip to end on the same high, even if the Lakers end up going 3-3. Even Pau Gasol acknowledges that change could be a'comin' sometime soon with the trade deadline set for March 15, a short five weeks away.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Next up: the 13-10 Boston Celtics. Maybe we can arrange for Tom Brady and Wes Welker to suit up for them and spot us two points to start the game.
↓ Much more after the jump ↓
Lakers News
- Williams rallies 76ers to 95-90 win over Lakers | Lakers.com
- Lakers 90, Sixers 95: Feb. 6 Running Diary | Lakers Blog
- Notebook: Sixers 95, Lakers 90 | NBA.com
- Kobe Moves to Fifth All-Time | NBA.com
- Lakers' Kobe Bryant passes Shaquille O'Neal for fifth place on scoring list | ESPN LA
- Rapid Reaction: Sixers 95, Lakers 90 | ESPN LA
- Mike Brown suspended, fined for actions in Los Angeles Lakers loss | ESPN LA
- Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant won't apologize to Philadelphia | ESPN LA
- The Forum: Evaluating Mike Brown | ESPN LA
- Kobe Bryant passes Shaquille O'Neal for 5th on the NBA All-time scoring list | ESPN LA
- Kobe Bryant fades in second half, Lakers lose to 76ers, 95-90 | LA Times
- NBA suspends Lakers Coach Mike Brown for one game | LA Times
- Grading the Lakers: A, B or C? | OC Register
- Pau Gasol acknowledges personnel changes ‘might occur’ | OC Register
- Shaq congratulates ‘greatest Laker’ Kobe | OC Register
- 76ers 95, Lakers 90 | OC Register
NBA.com
- Clippers making case for fair share of L.A.'s spotlight
- Power Rankings: The search for No. 4
- Western Conference All-Star Reserves
ESPN
- David Stern urges harmony for Utah Jazz's Greg Miller, Karl Malone
- Minnesota Timberwolves' Kevin Love banned 2 games for stomp
- Knicks overcome Carmelo Anthony injury as Jeremy Lin hangs career-high 28 on Jazz
Yahoo! Sports
- Lin scores 28, carries short-handed Knicks again
- Nash has 24 points to lead Suns past Hawks 99-90
- Boozer scores 24 points, Bulls beat Nets 108-87
ProBasketball Talk
- Dirk Nowitzki says he shouldn’t be an All-Star this year
- Report: Knicks, Lakers talk to Rockets about Jonny Flynn
- League says officiating this season no different than last year
- Derrick Rose leaves game with back spasms
- Kevin Love suspended two games for stepping on Scola’s face
- Spurs expect to get Ginobili back before All-Star Break
- Report: Allen Iverson in discussions to play in Puerto Rico
- Knicks’ Davis has setback, not expected until All-Star break at best
- Quote of the Day: How best to survive a long road trip
- Stern, Stockton ask Karl Malone, Jazz owner to end feud
Dime Mag / SLAM Online
- Miami Nice: Converse Open Gym | Dime Magazine
- We Reminisce: Kobe Bryant’s Memorable All-Star Debut Against Michael Jordan | Dime Magazine
- Playing The NBA Market: Who To Invest In, Who To Stay Away From | Dime Magazine
- Blake Griffin Abuses Gordon Hayward’s Layup | Dime Magazine
- Andre Iguodala Cuff Slam Dunk On Kyle Korver | Dime Magazine
- Report: Allen Iverson Being Recruited By League in Puerto Rico | SLAM Online
- NBAers React to the Super Bowl | SLAM Online
- Seattle Trying to Bring Back an NBA Team | SLAM Online
- Welcome to Masaryk | SLAM Online
Blogs and Other Links
- Sixers Pull of Late Comeback; Beat Lakers 95-90 | Lakers Nation
- Kobe Bryant Passes Shaquille O'Neal on All-Time Scoring List | Lakers Nation
- Philadelphia and Kobe Bryant Share a Unique Relationship | Lakers Nation
- Is Boston Back? | NBA Playbook
- On DeMarcus Cousins - An Aggressive Extrapolation | Hardwood Hype
- Baseline Awards 2.6.12: Thunder Guns | Eye On Basketball
- Chauncey Billups tore Achilles, done for season? | Eye On Basketball
- Report Card: Jeremy Lin carries the Knicks | Eye On Basketball
- Shaq congratulates Kobe for passing him | Eye On Basketball
- Carmelo Anthony strains groin against Jazz | Eye On Basketball
- Kobe Bryant passes Shaq on all-time points list | Eye On Basketball
- Chris Paul Strikes Again. Rudy Fernandez Isn’t Happy About It | Shaky Ankles
The Basketball Jones
- Pick-and-Pop: Hoops references in hip-hop from January
- Video: Steve Nash and Tim Duncan star in a Super Bowl ad
- The Fantasy Jump Off: Week 7 (2/6-2/12)
Multimedia